August 22, 2006 2:23 PM
Christian materialism and greed - Take 2
Sarah wrote this as a comment, but I think it raises some important questions:
Barbara,Thank you for writing about Christian materialism & greed. We moved to a small town about three years ago and started attending a church that we finally figured out was preaching the "prosperity" message. We left as soon as we put two & two together, but while we actually attended it was so very easy to let the pastor suck us in and actually believe what he was saying. He actually has said that if you are struggling financially you don't have enough faith in God. What a burden we carried - being told that while struggling financially.
This particular pastor also preaches against leaving the church or the area for any reason - even missions. It's hard to believe looking back we stayed in the church the two years that we did - my husband and I attended a missions Bible college, and have attended many diffrent churches over the years. My heart is breaking for the people I know and love that attended the church, and believe what the pastor is preaching. I feel like they are being brainwashed but don't know it. What can my husband and I do? How can we bring the truth to the light to people who look down on us because we do not seek money? We could really use some advice on this topic!! Thanks!
Tripp and I attended a cultlike church in the late 80's that had some similarities to yours, Sarah. There were also red alerts like the pastor's use of "the remnant" and "the chosen" to convince followers that they were the only real Christians in the world - everyone else was compromised. People who left the church were shunned, and sometimes denounced from the pulpit. It was weird and very damaging, but we were there for only a short time. I know what you mean, though - my heart aches for those who sacrificed 10 or 20 years to a man who owned a yacht and rental properties while many struggled to pay their tithes, a man who didn't seem to have the slightest idea about the love of God, after fleecing his sheep.
In 2004 I was commissioned to write a pamphlet called From Cult to Christ: Finding Your Way to Freedom, which you can find here at Legalism and Christian Cults.
Towards the end, I present these guidelines by Dr. Ron Enroth, author of Churches that Abuse and Recovering from Churches that Abuse:
Hallmarks of a Healthy Church
1) Stresses authority of Scripture, not special revelations2) Leads by strong and gentle example, gentle encouragement
3) Teaches Godly relationship with larger society
4) Keeps the focus on Jesus, not on the leader
5) Maintains high standards of purity
6) No additional requirements for salvation
7) Allows members to hear from God for themselves
8) Teaches biblical principles allowing individuals to grow and make decisions for themselves
9) Fosters relationships with the larger community that are more than self-serving.
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For further reading:
Churches That Abuse, Ronald M. Enroth, Zondervan, 1992
Healing Spiritual Abuse: How to Break Free from Bad Church Experiences, Ken Blue, Intervarsity Press, 1993.
Toxic Faith: Understanding and Overcoming Religious Addiction, Stephen Arterburn and Jack Felton, Shaw, 2001
Twisted Scriptures: A Path to Freedom From Abusive Churches, Mary Alice Chrnalogar, Zondervan, 2000
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I may be reading too much into Sarah's comments, but the part about a person's faith being measured by financial success rang a lot of bells. Often that kind of mentality goes hand-in-hand with other forms of spiritual abuse.
But not always. Living on the East Coast in a "Christian culture," I'm finding that Christians here tend to equate financial success with God's blessing. And wealthy Christians often exhibit the same character flaws you see in their nonbelieving peers: narcissism, frivolous spending, feelings of entitlement, generosity designed to control others.
I've been very poor and relatively wealthy in my lifetime. When we were too comfortable financially, I observed the tendency of my fellow believers to give me more respect than they would have had we not had money. To tell you the truth, I'm glad it was a temporary state because everything I see around me leads me to understand that money is a spiritual trap for Christians.
Yes, the Bible does not say money is the root of all evil, but that the love of money is the root of all evil. Unfortunately, though they would deny it, the spending habits of many wealthy Christians testifies to the fact that they love money and what it can buy. Which makes me understand why Jesus said, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." (Matthew 19:24).
The message couldn't be clearer. My advice is to steer clear of churches and individuals with the mistaken notion that Christians who are wealthy are favored by God and those who struggle aren't.
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